Hollywood star Jeremy Irons has sent his congratulations to The Prison Phoenix Trust on winning Charity of the Year in the Om Yoga Awards.
Jeremy, who lives in Oxfordshire, is patron of the Oxford-based charity, which supports yoga and meditation in prisons across the UK and Ireland.
He said: “I’m so proud to be a Patron of the Prison Phoenix Trust and for them being honoured with this Award.”
‘In these days when our prison system is suffering such dysfunction as to be almost unmanageable, one bright ray of hope is the work of the Trust. Working with both inmates and staff, using yoga and meditation techniques to lower the inevitable stress brought about by their situation, the Trust offers hope, a life beyond their mental and physical confines, and for the inmates offers a solid framework to carry with them on their release.
“I hope the attention this Award receives will both encourage more prison governors to welcome the Trust’s work, more inmates to join the classes, and even more of the public to donate to their work.”
The Prison Phoenix Trust received the award at the Om Yoga Show in London, following a public vote, in recognition its track record providing yoga and meditation to support prisoner rehabilitation.
In the last 10 years 30,084 people in prison have reached out to The Prison Phoenix Trust for help to practise yoga and meditation. Each individual received a personal response of a letter, a specialist book, CD or DVD and the offer of ongoing mentoring and support. There are currently more than 100 weekly yoga classes taking place in more than 50 prison, young offenders institutions and secure hospitals.
Changes to prison regimes from April 2024 are expected to make yoga even more widely available to support prisoner rehabilitation. This follows a growth in the body of evidence that yoga and meditation are effective tools in addressing issues that affect prisoners’ likelihood of reoffending. Parliamentarians recently heard evidence that yoga in prison
- improves impulse control and sustained attention
- decreases antisocial behaviour and negative affect states
- reduces psychological distress levels, paranoid and obsessive thoughts
- increased sense of responsibility, self-acceptance, and self-control